Published: October 2013 by TouchstoneFormat/Source: Paperback, purchased because I was bored and decided to go to Barnes and NobleGenre: Comics, Humor, Memoir

Synopsis:

This is a book I wrote. Because I wrote it, I had to figure out what to put on the back cover to explain what it is. I tried to write a long, third-person summary that would imply how great the book is and also sound vaguely authoritative–like maybe someone who isn’t me wrote it–but I soon discovered that I’m not sneaky enough to pull it off convincingly. So I decided to just make a list of things that are in the book:

Pictures
Words
Stories about things that happened to me
Stories about things that happened to other people because of me
Eight billion dollars*
Stories about dogs
The secret to eternal happiness*

*These are lies. Perhaps I have underestimated my sneakiness.

Review:

I have been following Allie Brosh’s blog for a few years and when I stumbled upon her new book on a trip to the store I knew I had to get it. I have a bad habit of buying the books of bloggers I like just to support them, even if I don’t need the book. [I’m talking to you “Twinkie Chan’s Crochet Goodies for Fashion Foodies. I don’t even chrochet!]

In contrast, this book definitely earned a spot on my shelf. I find Brosh’s juxtaposition of outlandish childhood stories with incredibly relateable descriptions of her experience with depression to be uniquely satisfying.

Though the combination of simple-but-expressive art and informal writing flowed a bit better in blog format, I would not say anything was lost in translation. Of the 18 stories included, only 7 are old ones from the blog, making it a happy medium between anthology and new content. I absolutely loved it and am eagerly awaiting more from Allie Brosh.